


Our Lady, Notre Dame

by SherlockRiverHekate



Category: James Bond (Craig movies)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 02:01:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,193
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30098583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SherlockRiverHekate/pseuds/SherlockRiverHekate
Summary: James Bond walked into Q branch, but there was something. Everything was too quiet. And then he saw one of Paris' most recognisable catherdals on fire. I had been thinking about this story since the day if the fire in 2019 and it's taken me this long to write it.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 9





	Our Lady, Notre Dame

Bond had just finished a meeting with M and, not wanting to go home, found himself making his way to Q branch. Occasionally they asked him to test new gadgets, or on the rare occasion, he watched another agent's mission. Even if none of that was occurring, there was a nice couch that Bond could sit on and read, or simply exist, while the branch carried on their work around him.

When Bond walked into Q branch, it was nearly silent. There was the intermittent clack of keys, and the occasional murmur, but all of that was nothing compared to the normal bustle of the branch. As he made his way to Q, Bond's attention was drawn to the only other noise in the room. The sound of a news report broadcast onto the large screen in the middle of the branch.  
"Q, what's happened?"  
Despite the low volume of his voice, it seemed like he was shouting in the comparable silence.  
"Notre Dame is burning," Q murmured, barely taking his eyes off of the screen to look at Bond.  
The agent focussed on the large screen, then saw the smaller screens displaying similar images from other news outlets, and footage that Bond was nearly certain came from Paris CCTV cameras rather than news ones.  
"How did this happen?" The shock was easy to hear in Bond's voice.  
"They're not sure yet," Q shook his head. "It doesn't appear to be a terrorist incident though."  
For a while they stood quietly, listening to the reports coming in.

Huddled around one desk were a few Q branchers, all sobbing quietly.  
Bond tapped Q on the arm gently, and inclined his head toward them.  
"Oh," Q whispered. "They all grew up in France. Two of them in Paris."  
"This must be hard to watch." Bond commented. "I know it's difficult for me. I've visited the cathedral a few times."  
"It's hard to imagine you in a church," Q smiled sadly. "But I feel the same. My grandparents were French. They took me to Paris for a day anytime I visited for more than a weekend."  
Bond moved a fraction closer, their arms brushing in a gesture of support.

"Is there anything we can do?" Bond asked Q a moment later.  
"Not really," Q responded. "They can't drop water from the top in case it damages the infrastructure, or cracks the stone. So our firefighting drones wouldn't be much help even if we could get them there in time. I did redirect a few agents in the area to be part of the human chain."  
"Human chain?"  
Q enlarged a window on a computer to his left. The footage showed a chain of people, emergency services works, clergy men and, apparently,MI6 agents snaking from inside the cathedral. They were passing relics from inside the burning building to trucks waiting outside.  
"They're trying to get as many of the priceless artefacts out before they're damaged. This is quicker than having people run a few things out individually, and it has a lower chance of anything being damaged."  
Bond pointed at the screen. "Is that Leverre?"  
Q nodded. "He was in the area, on leave actually. But he was keen to help out. Jones is there as well."  
"Do you know how much they've got out?" Bond asked curiously.  
Q shook his head, but one of the minions spoke up.  
"I've been checking off the most well-known artefacts as they've come out. They're over halfway there. But they won't be able to remove the two pipe organs, or the three rose windows."  
"Hopefully the firefighters have a plan to protect those," Bond told them.  
The minion agreed, and turned their attention back to their screen.

Bond had lost track of how long he had been in Q branch, all of them holding a near silent vigil over the proceedings of the burning cathedral. The fire had now taken a solid hold in part of the roof, and flames could be seen bursting from the spire. One minion gasped, drawing all attention back to the main screen.  
The spire was totally consumed by fire, now resembling a flaming skeleton. It seemed to sway from a moment, and everyone in the room was holding their breath. Then seconds later, the spire collapsed.  
Bond felt like he was watching a train wreck, knowing the devastating outcome and not able to do a single thing about it but bear witness.  
There was an outburst of talking from the reporter followed by a strangled sob from one of the French born minions, which broke the stunned silence in Q branch. This in turn created a quiet mumbling of disbelief that spread through the branch like a wave, and Q quietly demanding a sitrep from the agents he had on site.  
"Leverre and Jones, report." Q spoke crisply, but anyone would have been able to hear the underlying tension.  
Bond couldn't hear the reply, but after a few moments Q nodded.  
"And everyone else there?"  
More nodding before Q replied. "Thank you. Keep your comms on, I'll be on the line until this is under control."  
He turned to his branch at large. "All agents accounted for."  
A few people let out a breath they hadn't been aware they were holding.  
Bond was getting restless. He knew he wasn't good at waiting and watching when action was happening, but he was also aware that in this case there was nothing that he could do. The thought of going home crossed his mind, but was quickly dismissed for the sense of comradery that Q branch currently held.  
Q saw Bond fidget and took his eyes off of the screens to assess him. The quartermaster pursed his lips and then nodded once, clearly coming to a decision.  
He tossed a mobile at Bond without warning. Bond caught it and turned it over in his hand.  
"There's a 24 hour bakery in Brushfield st that delivers to us, unless you feel like driving," Q told him.  
Bond nodded. "I drove the Aston here," he commented, before finding the number stored in the phone.

Twenty minutes later, Bond and Miss Moneypenny walked in carrying boxes of pastries and a large tray of tea and coffee. Q had scribbled down a drinks order while Bond was on the phone.  
"How is everyone holding up down here?" Moneypenny asked Q.  
"Some better than others," Q told her. Everyone still had their focus predominately on the news coverage, but others were also flicking between tabs on their computers.  
"How are the agents we have out there?"  
"Just about to finish assisting. Though I expect they'll hang around until it's declared under control or out."  
Moneypenny nodded. "And I have to ask this, will it affect any operations we have planned?"  
Q contemplated this for a moment.  
"From what I can tell so far, no. But the other ripple effects that the fire will cause won't be evident until later."  
Moneypenny thanked him.  
"I'll write up a report tomorrow, and keep Tanner updated if information changes." He told her.  
She nodded again, and then went to take drinks and food to one of the huddles.

At one point, when there seemed that nothing was changing, a few minions elected to head home. All of them told Q that they were instantly reachable should things change. Another couple of them had taken blankets and pillows from their desk drawers and curled up under their desks or on various couches around the room. In the subdued quiet, they fell into a slumber.  
Q and Bond remained in the branch, both now seated and keeping tabs on the developments.

In the early hours of the next morning, nine hours after the fire broke out, the announcement was made that the Notre Dame cathedral fire was partially extinguished and fully under control.  
Q contacted the two agents on the ground, informing them of the announcement and advising them to head back to their residences and rest. Then he removed his earpiece and started shutting down some of the news feeds.  
"Do you want me to wake the minions and send them home?" Bond asked.  
Q looked at the time and shook his head.  
"Let them sleep. When they wake, they can go home. A new shift will be in by mid morning anyway."  
"What about you?" Bond asked.  
"I have a sofa in my office," Q told him. "I want to stay close in case this changes anything for agents in the field."  
Bond nodded slowly.  
"Go home 007," Q told him gently. "Get some sleep. If we need to send you out, you will be called."

Later that morning, and fifteen hours after the fire first broke out, the news outlets reported that the fire that had burned the Notre Dame cathedral was extinguished and that assessments would be undertaken soon to determine the amount of damage that had sustained.  
When Bond woke, he turned the news on and listened to a recap of the night's events, most of which he had watched in real time.  
The French president had addressed his people, and reassured them that most of the history of the cathedral had been saved. Many artefacts had already been removed for safe keeping, while the human chain had removed many more. And the alter, pipe organs and 13th century rose windows, all which couldn't be removed, had been smoke affected but ultimately were undamaged.  
Bond would never admit it out loud, but something in his chest loosened when he heard that news.  
The president was also vowing to repair and rebuild Notre Dame, with an aim to get the most of it repaired by 2024. He also acknowledged that it would take a lot of money to do so.  
Across the bottom of the screen, a few numbers appeared, with a note informing viewers that they could donate there.

When Bond returned to Q branch that afternoon, there was a different set of minions there, headed by Q.  
Q looked more rested than when Bond had left, and he was wearing a different set of clothes. Bond couldn't guess if he had actually left the branch, or just used the showers in the building and kept a spare set of clothes in his office.  
The other person Bond saw there was Miss Moneypenny.  
"What are you doing down here?" He asked as he stepped beside her.  
"Keeping an eye on everything," she said simply.  
Bond wasn't quite sure what she meant by that, but it wasn't worth questioning her about it.  
"Is everything back to normal then?"  
Bond's question was interrupted by a manical giggle and a shout of "I'm in!"  
"Well done," Q complimented. "Take as much as you can without it triggering suspicion."  
Moneypenny raised an eyebrow at him.  
"Should I ask?"  
"Probably not," Q replied. "But some of the minions decided that there are various, umm, groups, around the world that could spare money towards the rebuild."  
"They're hacking into groups that have gotten their money less than legally," Bond translated.  
"I never said that," Q replied primly, a shark like grin on his face.  
"Officially, I never heard a thing." Moneypenny told him. "Unofficially, I'd be looking at some of the groups that contributed to the election of the American president."  
The look in Q's eyes was gleeful as he made his way back to the computer.

That night, Bond sat at his computer, a notepad beside him.  
He was looking into the groups that were taking names for when man power was needed for the repair effort. He had more than enough hours of leave stored that he could use, and he was only across the channel should he be called in. Plus, the skills he might gain could be put towards the possible repair of his own family manor, Skyfall.  
Bond had also donated a few thousand to the repair fund. He was awarded very good hazard pay as a 00. Currently he only had bills, the Aston Martin and scotch to spend it on; he knew that the money wouldn't be missed.  
Though most of his visits to Paris had been as an adult, he did have a very hazy memory of visiting the city as a young child. He wasn't even sure if this information was in his file but Bond, like Q, had visited the city with his grandparents once upon a time. His mother was French and when he was very little, she had taken Bond to visit her parents and see where she had grown up.  
Bond shook his head, pulling himself out of his melancholy. He stood, and looked out his window, where he could just see the lights shining on MI6. He stared at the building for a few moments, then rose and made his way to bed.  
Across the city, in the building that Bond had been staring at, a notification popped up on Q's computer. He read the message, and then dismissed it with a small smile. Q would make sure that, when the time came, Bond was given the time off to assist in rebuilding.


End file.
